Gear Advice: Camera

Many memories will be made on the trail, and recording them can extend the trip for years to come. The digital age has come, and it works very well for backpackers. Some of the new point and shoot digital cameras are very small and take great pictures. Be sure to keep it dry, and be prepared for dropping it. I would not give an expensive camera to a boy to take on a hike.

Bring extra batteries, and be prepared to keep them in the sleeping bag with you on winter events, or they will die.

Bill’s Choice

OK, this is one is a problem for me. I run a Canon D60, 6.3 mega pixel SLR with a 1Gig hard drive. I usually carry two lenses. One is a 17-40mm and the other a 75-300mm. I have a padded case for the 75-300mm, and usually have the 17-40mm attached to the body. The body & lens fit in a padded case that attaches to the chest strap of my pack. So far I have not had any accidents with this rig, and am very careful as the replacement cost would exceed the cost of one of the cars I have in my driveway. I do not recommend this setup for kids, but if you are serious about photography, you can take it with you. Drop me a note if you want to talk more about this.

On longer trips, I back down to a Canon SD850. It takes great pictures, and is small.

I have also been known to carry a small video camera on the trail. This can be a lot of fun, but don’t try to carry this and an SLR on the same trip.